Germinator is a PSN puzzle game available for both the PS3 and PS Vita. It's similar to other "bubble shooters" in which you shoot colored orbs, in this case germs, in an effort to make combos and clear them from the board. However, in this game, you are attempting to "pop" germs by combining 4 or more of the same color. This will, in turn, pop adjacent germs. The goal is to clear the screen of the black germs while scoring as many points as possible. The skill in which you complete a level is measured by a rating out of three stars that is received upon ridding the screen of those pesky black germs.

You can also supercharge germs once enough charge is built up. When these supercharged germs pop, they have various effects from popping all others of the same color to absorbing all nearby germs before popping. These are the key to completing levels effectively and racking up those 3-star ratings.

There are four game modes in Germinator: Story, Puzzle, Arcade, and Duel. Story mode is your classic clear the screen before the germs reach the top. Puzzle mode consists of attempting to finish a level with a limited number of shots. In Arcade mode, you attempt to survive as long as possible whilst an infinite pack of germs ascend the screen. Lastly, in Duel mode, you can compete against computer players in a 1-on-1 match to clear the screen first.

Strategies for Story mode and Puzzle mode are listed in the description of The Germinator.
Strategies for Duel mode are listed in the description of Photo Finish.

Playing on the Vita:
The touch controls allow you to shoot much quicker with the same, if not more, accuracy than using the analog sticks. Simply tap where you want your shot to end to fire it there. To supercharge your shot using the touch controls, hold your touch on the germ you are about to shoot and then drag your finger to the location that you are aiming for.

The InoculatorSurvive for 5 minutes or more in Arcade Mode

This trophy has been reported to be glitched.

There have been reports of this trophy not popping after five minutes. I advise that you manually time yourself while attempting this trophy. If it does not pop after five minutes, restart the game and try again. This appears to fix the issue.

*** This trophy should not be attempted until Pandemic difficulty has been unlocked for Arcade mode. This difficulty becomes unlocked as you earn more stars in Story and Puzzle modes ***

This trophy is extrememly difficult, if not near impossible, to achieve in a difficulty that is not Pandemic. Luckily, it is rather easy in Pandemic difficulty. In Pandemic difficulty, every shot is a supercharged germ. This means that any time a germ is popped, the special ability is activated. This makes earning this trophy quite easy using the following strategy:

- Always work from the bottom of the screen.
- Bank purple germs off the top of the wall so that they bounce across and clear the screen.
- A charged yellow germ can be activated by shooting it with a purple germ. The yellow germs clear everything above it, so these can easily be used to clear the screen.
- If in trouble, shoot germs as quickly as possible until you get a purple germ. Then either use that germ to trigger a yellow germ or bank it off the top of the wall.

Clean-a-ramaGet a combo-pop of 100 or more germs with one shot

*** This trophy should not be attempted until Pandemic difficulty has been unlocked for Arcade mode. This difficulty becomes unlocked as you earn more stars in Story and Puzzle modes ***

This trophy is fairly easy to obtain in Pandemic difficulty of Arcade mode. While playing, shoot germs until you have a purple germ. Then let the germs accumulate to the top of the screen. Once they are close to the top, bank the purple germ off the top of the wall. This should allow it to bounce across the screen eliminating all the germs in and above its path. Hopefully, if there are no other purple germs in its path, it will clear the screen taking over 100 germs with it, and the trophy will pop.

Mother of all PopsPop a germ of size 25x or greater

This trophy can easily be achieved in Story mode level 2-11 using the following strategy:

- Shoot the first nine shots at germs of the same color as you are shooting, but don't pop any germs.
- After nine shots, you should have enough charge to supercharge a shot.
- The tenth germ is blue. Supercharge it and shoot it at the large blue germ near the middle of the screen.

This may take a couple tries to make sure it gets to 25x size. Experiment with where you are shooting your first nine shots if you are having trouble.

The MarksmanFinish any Puzzle level with a single shot

There are many puzzle levels which require a one shot solution to obtain 3 stars, but the earliest level it can be obtained is level 1-2. All you need to do is shoot your first shot just to the right of the long line of black germs. This should connect with the yellow germ, popping it and taking all the black germs with it. Below is a video of a successful one shot solution to Puzzle mode level 1-2:

Germ-a-thonComplete 20 different levels in a single run in Puzzle Mode

As the description states, this trophy will pop after completing 20 puzzle levels in a row without quitting Puzzle mode. If playing on the Vita, you can put it in standby mode during this run and it will still pop as long as you do not quit Puzzle mode or close the game.

Sound LogicComplete all Puzzle Mode levels

Photo FinishWin the 15th round in a Duel match against “The Germinator”

This is by far the most difficult trophy in the game. Not only do you have to beat Germinator in Duel Mode in a 15 round duel, which is already difficult enough, but you have to do it in the fifteenth round. It is best to try and get out to a lead, get to seven wins, and let Germinator win rounds until it is 7-7. Then you just have to go all out in the fifteenth round and hope you come away with a victory.

There are two different methods for obtaining this trophy. I recommend trying both and seeing which one you prefer and are better at. It is easier to succeed using method one, but the rounds can take a very long time. Method two allows you more repetition, but it is more difficult to defeat Germinator.

Method 1: Pandemic Mode
In Pandemic Mode, each shot is supercharged. This means you can shoot germs through other germs until it hits an identical colored germ. The basic strategy in this method is to shoot germs away (you can just shoot them straight down) until you get a purple germ. Then, allow the germs to accumulate to near the top of the screen and bank the purple germ of the top of the side wall. This should clear the screen, and send multiple big black germs to Germinator's side. Keep an eye on Germinator while you are waiting for the germs to reach the top. If he clears a large amount of germs, you may need to shoot your purple germ early to avoid losing when the germs that are sent your way fall.

This method can take a very long time as Germinator is very good at clearing the germs you send his way. But if you stay persistent using this strategy, he should eventually succumb to the pressure you are putting on.

Method 2: Battle Mode
Battle Mode is a classic, clear the screen before your opponent does, setup. Like the other Duel modes, clearing large amounts of germs sends black germs to the opponent. This method requires a little more skill, but it can take a lot less time to earn the trophy as rounds are generally 15-30 seconds long.

The key to battle mode is working quickly and efficiently. The only real strategy here is to quickly eliminate enough germs to be able to shoot a supercharged germ. Supercharged yellow germs near the bottom of the screen or blue germs near the middle of the screen generally work best, but it depends on the initial setup. With a little bit of luck and a good amount of skill, you can earn this trophy fairly quickly using this method.

The GerminatorCollect all stars in Puzzle and Story Mode

There are a total of 75 levels each in Story mode and Puzzle mode. This trophy will pop once you have 225/225 stars in both modes.

Story Mode:
There are two basic strategies to use in Story mode that can pretty much guarantee achieving 3 stars:

1.) If the level contains a yellow germ, leave as many germs remaining as possible while popping a supercharged yellow germ near the bottom of the screen. This will clear the entire screen in a single shot and almost certainly garner enough points to earn 3 stars.

2.) Clear the level as much as possible, but leave one final black germ remaining. Then, spam shots away from the black germ popping colored germs to earn points. Continue this until there is barely enough room for a full sized germ. For even more points, use only bank shots. Lastly, pop the final black germ.

These two strategies should be enough to obtain 3 stars on almost every level. For your reference, the scores necessary to obtain 3 stars for each level are listed in the spoilers below.

Toggle Spoiler

Puzzle Mode:
In Puzzle mode, you have a certain number of shots available to you before failing the puzzle. You are awarded a bonus for each shot you have remaining when the level is cleared. Therefore, obtaining 3 stars for most of the puzzle levels will require very few shots. Unlike Story mode, most levels in Puzzle mode require one particular combination of shots to obtain 3-stars, and there really is no single strategy that can be applied across all the levels.

I'm not going to list all 75 puzzle solutions in this guide, but there are solutions for each level on YouTube that can help you out if you are stuck on a particular level.